Automatic configuration of a network device

ABSTRACT

A hybrid device can implement functionality to automatically configure itself to form a home network with other network devices. If it is determined that the hybrid device is the central access point of a hybrid network, operating parameters are determined for the central access point. The central access point can then operate in conjunction with other non-CAP hybrid devices of the hybrid device to determine how to configure the non-CAP hybrid device. The configuration of the non-CAP hybrid device can be determined based, at least in part, on a communication link performance measurement between the CAP and the non-CAP hybrid device. Furthermore, the hybrid network can also be monitored to ensure that the hybrid devices do not repeatedly or randomly switch between different configurations.

BACKGROUND

Embodiments of the inventive subject matter generally relate to thefield of communication networks and, more particularly, for automaticconfiguration of a network device.

Hybrid communication networks typically comprise multiple networkdevices that implement multiple networking technologies (e.g., wirelesslocal area network (WLAN) technologies, powerline communicationtechnologies, Ethernet, etc.). Typically, the communication mechanismsand protocol specifics (e.g., device and topology discovery, bridging toother networks, etc.) are unique to each networking technology. Themultiple networking technologies are typically interconnected usingbridging-capable devices that forward frames between the differentnetwork technologies and media to form a single, extended communicationnetwork. Hybrid communication networks typically present multiple framedelivery routes between any two hybrid devices.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments for automatic configuration of a network device aredisclosed. In one embodiment, a network device determines whether it isa central access point of a communication network, where the centralaccess point is coupled to a gateway of the communication network via afirst communication interface and is coupled to another network devicevia at least a second communication interface. In response todetermining that the network device is the central access point of thecommunication network, an operating parameter is determined for thenetwork device configured as the central access point. In response todetermining that the network device is not the central access point ofthe communication network, it is determined how to configure the networkdevice based, at least in part, on a performance measurement at thenetwork device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present embodiments may be better understood, and numerous objects,features, and advantages made apparent to those skilled in the art byreferencing the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an example hybrid communicationnetwork including a mechanism for automatic configuration of a hybriddevice;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating example operations for automaticconfiguration of a hybrid device in a hybrid communication network;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram for determining a personality of the hybriddevice;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating example operations for selectingthe band, channel, and power of the central access point (CAP);

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating example operations for selectingthe personality, band, channel, and power of the non-central accesspoint device (non-CAP device); and

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of one embodiment of an electronic deviceincluding a mechanism for automatic configuration of the electronicdevice.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT(S)

The description that follows includes exemplary systems, methods,techniques, instruction sequences, and computer program products thatembody techniques of the present inventive subject matter. However, itis understood that the described embodiments may be practiced withoutthese specific details. For instance, although examples refer toconfiguration of wireless local area network (WLAN) interfaces (e.g.,IEEE 802.11 compatible interfaces) of a hybrid device, embodiments arenot so limited. In other embodiments, the configuration techniquesdescribed herein can be extended to network interfaces that implementother suitable communication protocols and standards (e.g., power linecommunication (PLC) interfaces, such as HomePlug® AV interfaces, etc.).Although examples refer to operations for configuring a hybrid devicewith multiple network interfaces, embodiments are not so limited. Inother embodiments, the configuration operations described herein canalso be applied to legacy devices (e.g., network devices with a singlenetwork interface), such as legacy WLAN devices and/or legacy PLCdevices. Although examples refer to automatically configuring a hybriddevice in a home network, in other embodiments, operations forautomatically configuring a hybrid device can be executed in othernetwork environments, such as an office, school, train station network,etc. In other instances, well-known instruction instances, protocols,structures, and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not toobfuscate the description.

In a communication network (e.g., a home network) that comprisesmultiple hybrid devices, each hybrid device may support multiple networkinterfaces (e.g., a combination of physical (PHY) layer and media accesscontrol (MAC) layer) that couple the hybrid device to correspondingmultiple communication network segments or access technologies (e.g.,Ethernet, WLAN, multimedia over coax alliance (MoCA®), Ethernet overcoax (EoC), PLC, etc.). Additionally, WLAN-capable hybrid devices (e.g.,hybrid devices that support WLAN communication) may have differenthardware capabilities (e.g., 2.4 GHz and/or 5 GHz WLAN support, dualband single radio, dual band dual concurrent radio, etc.). Furthermore,it may be possible to configure each WLAN-capable hybrid device in thehome network differently depending on the hardware capabilities andinterconnection with other network devices in the home network. It maybe difficult and cumbersome for a user to: 1) determine how each networkinterface of each hybrid device in the home network should beconfigured, and 2) manually configure each network interface of eachhybrid device in the home network for optimal performance of the hybriddevices and the home network.

In some embodiments, a hybrid device (“TCA-capable hybrid device”) canbe configured to execute a total configuration algorithm (TCA) describedherein so that the hybrid device configures itself automatically to forma communication network (e.g., an IEEE Std 1905.1 hybrid communicationnetwork) with other network devices with minimal or zero userinterventions. A configuration unit of the hybrid device can determineand control the behavior of a hybrid device during its initializationand its operation. For example, as will be further described below, theconfiguration unit can determine the personality of the hybrid device(e.g., the configuration of a WLAN access point (AP) module and/or aWLAN station (STA) module of the hybrid device), the WLAN communicationband and channel in which the WLAN AP module and/or the WLAN STA moduleof the hybrid device should operate, the security credentials of theWLAN AP module and/or the WLAN STA module of the hybrid device, thetransmit power level of the WLAN AP module of the hybrid device, and theconfiguration of bridges (e.g., flooding behavior) between variousinterfaces of the hybrid device. In some embodiments, the personality ofthe hybrid device can refer to whether to switch ON/OFF the WLAN APmodule and/or the WLAN STA module of the hybrid device, as will befurther described below. Automatic configuration of the hybrid devicecan enable good/reliable connectivity to the hybrid device, minimizeinterference on the WLAN communication band (e.g., the 2.4 GHz and/or 5GHz WLAN communication band), configure access points in the hybridcommunication network to use different communication channels (ifpossible), maximize WLAN coverage (and connectivity) in the hybridcommunication network (e.g., a home network), and maximize the capacityof the hybrid communication network (e.g., WLAN coverage may be providedeverywhere in the home network). The automatic configuration of thehybrid device can enable the user to plug in (or connect) the hybriddevices in random order and in unpredictable locations. The hybriddevices can self-organize among themselves to discover each other andconfigure their personalities without user intervention. Furthermore,the hybrid communication network can also be monitored to ensure thatthe hybrid devices do not repeatedly or randomly switch betweendecisions on personality, channel, and power selections, etc.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an example hybrid communicationnetwork 100 including a mechanism for automatic configuration of ahybrid device 102. The hybrid communication network 100 comprises hybriddevices 102, 118, and 120, a legacy WLAN device 122, and a networkgateway 124. The hybrid device 102 comprises a communication unit 104.The communication unit 104 comprises a configuration unit 106 and amonitoring unit 108. The hybrid devices 102, 118, and 120 comprisemultiple network interfaces that utilize a plurality of communicationprotocols (which may also be referred to as access technologies) tocouple the hybrid device to a plurality of communication networks. Forexample, as depicted in FIG. 1, the hybrid device 102 comprises fournetwork interfaces—an Ethernet interface 110, a PLC interface 112, aWLAN client station (“WLAN STA”) interface 114, and a WLAN access point(“WLAN AP”) interface 116. Hybrid devices 102, 118, and 120 can compriseany suitable number and type of network interfaces. The legacy WLANdevice 122 comprises a single WLAN interface that couples the legacyWLAN device 122 to the WLAN segment. However, the hybrid communicationnetwork 100 can comprise other suitable types of legacy network devicesthat comprise a single type of network interface that couple the legacynetwork device to a corresponding single communication network segment(or access technology). In the specific example of FIG. 1, the Ethernetinterface 110 of the hybrid device 102 is coupled with an Ethernetinterface (not shown) of the hybrid device 118 and with the networkgateway 124. The network gateway 124 couples the hybrid communicationnetwork 100 (e.g., a home network) to an external communication network(e.g., the Internet). In the specific example of FIG. 1, the PLCinterface 112 of the hybrid device 102 is coupled with a PLC interface(not shown) of the hybrid device 118 and a PLC interface (not shown) ofthe hybrid device 120. The WLAN STA interface 114 of the hybrid device102 is coupled with a WLAN AP interface (not shown) of the hybrid device120, while the WLAN AP interface 116 of the hybrid device is coupledwith the legacy WLAN device 122 (e.g., configured as a STA). In someembodiments, the hybrid devices 102, 118, and 120 may each be a networkdevice that implements the IEEE Std 1905.1 communication protocols;while the legacy WLAN device 122 may be a network device that does notsupport the IEEE Std 1905.1 communication protocols. In this embodiment,the hybrid devices 102, 118, and 120 and/or the legacy WLAN device 122may comprise any suitable number of network interfaces. In someembodiments, the hybrid devices 102, 118, and 120 may each be a networkdevice that implements the total configuration algorithm (TCA) describedherein for automatically configuring itself in the communicationnetwork. The legacy WLAN device 122 may be a network device that doesnot implement the TCA described herein.

The hybrid devices 102, 118, and 120 can each be electronic devicesconfigured to implement a plurality of communication protocols or accesstechnologies, such as a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a mobilephone, a smart appliance, a gaming console, an access point, a desktopcomputer, or other suitable electronic devices. Although not depicted inFIG. 1, the hybrid devices 118 and 120 can each comprise a communicationunit, a configuration unit, and a monitoring unit, as depicted withreference to the hybrid device 102. Likewise, the legacy WLAN device 122can be an electronic device configured to implement a singlecommunication protocol or access technology, such as a laptop computer,a tablet computer, a mobile phone, a smart appliance, a gaming console,an access point, a desktop computer, or other suitable electronicdevice. In some embodiments, the communication unit of the hybriddevices 102, 118, and 120 and the legacy WLAN device 122 can each beimplemented on a system-on-a-chip (SoC), an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), or another suitable integrated circuit (IC)to enable network communications on their respective network device. Insome embodiments, the communication units may each comprise one or moreprocessors and memory, and may each be implemented in one or moreintegrated circuits on one or more circuit boards of their respectivenetwork device. As will further be described below, the configurationunit 106 can execute operations to automatically configure the hybriddevice 102; while the monitoring unit 108 can execute operations tomonitor the state of the hybrid communication network 100 and determinewhether to re-execute the operations to configure the hybrid device 102.

In some embodiments, to enable automatic configuration of the hybriddevice 102, the configuration unit 106 can receive the authenticationstatus of each network interface 110, 112, 114, and 116 as an input. Theauthentication status can indicate, for example, whether the hybriddevice 102 (e.g., a PLC module) successfully joined the powerlinenetwork (e.g., after push button configuration operations wereexecuted). The configuration unit 106 can also receive channel scanresults (e.g., based on executing automatic channel selection (ACS)operations, enhanced ACS (EACS) operations, or another suitable channelscan operations), link metric information (e.g., WLAN received signalstrength indicator (RSSI) measurements) from one or more access points(APs) in the hybrid communication network 100, and link qualitymeasurement at least from the local PLC interface 112 to a centralaccess point (also referred to as “CAP,” “root access point,” “Root AP,”or “upstream device”). Additionally, the configuration unit 106 can alsoreceive results of a connectivity test executed for each networkinterface 110, 112, 114, and 116 to an Internet service provider (ISP)gateway (e.g., ping or dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP)executed on WLAN, PLC, and Ethernet). In some embodiments, theconfiguration unit 106 can also receive results of a data rate testbetween each network interface 110, 112, 114, and 116 of the hybriddevice 102 and the CAP.

At stage A, the configuration unit 106 determines whether the hybriddevice 102 is a central access point (CAP) of the hybrid communicationnetwork 100. The CAP can be an access point that is coupled to thenetwork gateway 124 of the hybrid communication network 100 via a singlehop (also referred to as “communication link”) over a singlecommunication medium or via a single communication interface. The CAPcan be directly coupled to the network gateway 124 or can be coupled tothe network gateway 124 via one or more switches. Typically, the CAP canbe an access point that is coupled to the network gateway 124 via asingle Ethernet communication link. In other embodiments, the CAP can becoupled to the network gateway 124 via another suitable wiredcommunication link (e.g., a PLC communication link, a MoCA communicationlink, etc.). In other embodiments, the CAP can be coupled to the networkgateway 124 via another suitable wireless communication link (e.g., aWiMAX communication link). In some embodiments, the network gateway 124can be a network device that connects the hybrid communication network100 (e.g., the home network) to an external network (e.g., that providesInternet access to the home network). Typically, the bridging capabilityof the CAP can be determined based on a suitable loop avoidancemechanism (e.g., a hybrid spanning tree protocol (hSTP), CAP duplicatedetection operations, etc.). For example, if the hybrid communicationnetwork 100 is a home network, the CAP can be a home wireless routerthat directly connects to the network gateway 124. The CAP can serve asthe anchor point for constructing WLAN topologies.

At stage B, if the hybrid device 102 is the CAP, the configuration unit106 determines operating parameters of the CAP. As will be furtherdiscussed below in FIGS. 3-4, the configuration unit 106 can determinethe operating parameters including an operating communication band(e.g., a 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band, 5 GHz WLAN communication band,etc.) in which the CAP should operate, an operating communicationchannel of the operating communication band in which the CAP shouldoperate, and a transmit power with which the CAP should transmitmessages in the hybrid communication network 100.

At stage C, if the hybrid device 102 is not the CAP, the configurationunit 106 determines whether to switch ON/OFF the WLAN AP and STA modulesof the hybrid device 102 and determines operating parameters of thehybrid device 102. Whether to switch ON/OFF the WLAN AP and STA modulesof the hybrid device 102 can be referred to as the “personality” of thehybrid device 102. If the hybrid device 102 is not the CAP of the hybridcommunication network 100, the hybrid device 102 may also be referred toherein as a “non-CAP” hybrid device. If the hybrid device 102 is not theCAP of the hybrid communication network 100, the configuration unit 106can operate in conjunction with the CAP to determine the personality andthe operating parameters of the non-CAP hybrid device 102. Theconfiguration unit 106 can analyze the received inputs (e.g., theauthentication status, channel scan results, link metric information,link quality measurements, etc.). For the WLAN interfaces of the hybriddevice 102, the configuration unit 106 can indicate whether a WLAN APmodule (e.g., a WLAN module configured as an access point) and/or a WLANSTA module (e.g., a WLAN module configured as a client station) shouldbe enabled or disabled (e.g., switched ON/OFF), a band/channel in whichthe WLAN module of the hybrid device 102 should operate, a transmitpower at which the WLAN AP module should operate, whether RTS/CTSprotocol should be used for collision avoidance, and other suchoperating information. The configuration unit 106 can also indicate theflooding behavior of bridging-capable network interfaces of the hybriddevice 102. In some embodiments, in addition to configuring the WLANinterfaces 114 and 116 of hybrid device 102, the configuration unit 106can determine and indicate configuration parameters associated with thePLC interface 112 and/or other network interfaces (e.g., Ethernet, MoCA,EOC, etc.) of the hybrid device 102. In addition, the configuration unit106 can determine the operating parameters of the non-CAP hybrid device(e.g., an operating communication band, an operating communicationchannel, a transmit power, etc.) based, at least in part, on theoperating parameters of the CAP and the personality of the non-CAPhybrid device. Operations for determining the personality, band,channel, and the power of the non-CAP hybrid device will further bedescribed with reference to FIG. 5.

At stage D, the monitoring unit 108 monitors the hybrid communicationnetwork 100 and determines whether to re-evaluate the configuration ofthe hybrid device 102. The monitoring unit 108 can monitor the status ofthe hybrid communication network 100 and can determine, for example,whether network interfaces have been disabled, whether hybrid deviceshave been added to the hybrid communication network 100, whether thequality of communication links has deteriorated, etc. Based on thestatus of the hybrid communication network 100, the monitoring unit 108can determine whether the configuration of the hybrid device 102 shouldbe re-evaluated (e.g., whether the operations described above withreference to stages A-C should be re-executed). For example, theconfiguration of the hybrid device 102 may be re-evaluated if a networkdevice (e.g., a hybrid device or a legacy device) is added to the hybridcommunication network 100, if a network interface (e.g., a WLAN STA) ofthe hybrid device fails, etc. If so, the monitoring unit 108 can notifythe configuration unit 106 to re-evaluate the configuration of thehybrid device 102.

In some embodiments, for automatic configuration of the hybrid device102, the configuration unit 106 may make various assumptions about thehybrid communication network 100, as will be further described in theFigures below. For example, it may be assumed that the network gateway124 of the hybrid communication network 100 is connected to the CAP. Ifthe hybrid device designated as the CAP comprises a WLAN STA module(e.g., a WLAN module configured as a client station), then the WLAN STAmodule of the CAP may be disabled. The hybrid device designated as theCAP may also be designated as an IEEE Std 1905.1 registrar of the hybridcommunication network 100. As another example, it may be assumed thatthe hybrid communication network 100 only comprises one CAP. As anotherexample, it may be assumed that all the WLAN client stations on theTCA-capable hybrid devices (e.g., the hybrid devices that executefunctionality for automatic configuration described herein) areconnected to a CAP or a non-CAP access point. In some embodiments, ifthe WLAN AP module of the hybrid device is enabled (e.g., switched ON)then the WLAN STA module of the hybrid device can associate with theCAP. In some embodiments, if the WLAN AP module of the hybrid device isdisabled (e.g., switched OFF), then the WLAN STA module of the hybriddevice may associate with either the CAP or any non-CAP access point ofthe hybrid communication network 100. In some embodiments, other networkdevices in the hybrid communication network 100 that are not TCA-capablemay connect to any access point in the hybrid communication network.

In some embodiments, one or more of the hybrid devices (e.g., whether ornot they are bridging-capable hybrid devices) in the hybridcommunication network 100 may be configured to execute the operationsfor automatic configuration described herein. In some embodiments, thehybrid communication network 100 that comprises TCA-capable hybriddevices may also be compatible with legacy WLAN devices (e.g., WLAN onlydevices that do not operate in accordance with IEEE Std 1905.1) and/orlegacy PLC devices (e.g., PLC-only devices that do not operate inaccordance with IEEE Std 1905.1).

It is further noted that the hybrid communication network 100 cancomprise any suitable number of hybrid devices, any suitable number oflegacy devices, and each of these network devices can be inter-connectedin any suitable format. In some embodiments, all the network devices inthe hybrid communication network can be hybrid devices (e.g., IEEE Std1905.1 compatible devices). In other embodiments, one or more IEEE Std1905.1 hybrid routers can be used to provide coverage in a hybridcommunication network. However, one or more legacy WLAN access pointscan also be used in the hybrid communication network to assist withbetter coverage. In this embodiment, a user may manually configure theWLAN credentials (e.g., SSID and WLAN passphrase) for the hybrid routerto match the WLAN credentials of the legacy WLAN access point to avoidreconfiguring all existing end WLAN devices.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram (“flow”) 200 illustrating example operationsfor automatic configuration of a hybrid device in a hybrid communicationnetwork. The flow 200 begins at block 202.

At block 202, the hybrid device executes one or more power-upoperations. In some embodiments, the personality of the hybrid device(e.g., the hybrid device 102 of FIG. 1) may not be preserved acrosspower ON/OFF cycle. Therefore, when the hybrid device 102 is powered on,the hybrid device 102 can execute one or more personality identificationoperations that will be described in further detail below in FIGS. 2-5.The flow continues at block 204. In some embodiments, e.g., if a rebootwithout reset is performed, then the flow continues at block 206 becausesecurity credentials of the PLC and WLAN modules may be stored innon-volatile memory and may be maintained across power cycles.

At block 204, the hybrid device joins the hybrid communication networkand configures network interface security. For example, WLAN interfacesecurity may be configured based on user input, push button Wi-Fi®simple connect (WSC) operations, randomization, IEEE Std 1905.1auto-config operations, or other suitable WLAN security configurationoperations that may or may not rely on the push button connection (PBC)procedures. As another example, the PLC interface security may beconfigured based on user input, push button simple connect operations,or other suitable PLC security configuration operations. The flowcontinues at block 206.

At block 206, flooding behavior of network interfaces of the hybriddevice is disabled. The flooding behavior is part of the bridgingbehavior of the hybrid device 102. In general, the bridging behavior canindicate how a unicast packet should be routed through the hybridcommunication network 100. Disabling the flooding behavior of the hybriddevice 102 can serve to prevent bridging loops (in the hybridcommunication network 100) which can be catastrophic and cause failureof the hybrid communication network 100. In disabling the floodingbehavior, broadcast and multicast packets may not be bridged acrossnetwork interfaces of the hybrid device 102, while the hybrid device 102is in the configuration state. As will be further discussed below, aspart of the configuration process, the personality of the hybrid device102 can be determined. In addition, it can also be determined whethereach network interface of the hybrid device can support bridging. Afterthe flooding behavior is disabled, the flow continues at block 208,where the personality of the hybrid device is determined.

At block 208, a personality of the hybrid device is determined. Eachhybrid device 102 can be assigned one of the following personalities.The hybrid device 102 can be 1) a central access point (CAP) of thehybrid communication network 100, 2) a standby CAP that is not the CAPbut it is capable of being the CAP if the existing CAP fails ordisappears from the network 100, 3) a non-CAP device that is neither aCAP nor a standby CAP, or 4) an unknown personality type. The non-CAPdevice can be assigned a personality per communication band on which thenon-CAP device (e.g., the WLAN module) is configured to operate. Thepersonality of the non-CAP hybrid device may also be referred to hereinas “second-level personality.” As will further be discussed below inFIG. 5, the non-CAP hybrid device can be: 1) an access point (e.g., aWLAN AP module of the hybrid device is enabled and a WLAN STA module ofthe hybrid device is disabled), 2) a relay (e.g., the WLAN AP module andthe WLAN STA module of the hybrid device are enabled and are operatingon the same communication channel/band), 3) a sink (e.g., the WLAN APmodule of the hybrid device is disabled and the WLAN STA module of thehybrid device is enabled), or 4) disabled (e.g., the WLAN AP module andthe WLAN STA module of the hybrid device are disabled). In someembodiments, if the hybrid device 102 does not have any previouslystored personality, the hybrid device 102 is assigned an “unknown” type.After personality identification operations are executed, the type ofthe device (e.g., whether an access point, a relay, a sink, or disabled)can be determined and stored across power cycles.

After the personality identification operations are executed (describedfurther in FIG. 3), if it is determined that the hybrid device 102 isthe CAP, the hybrid device 102 can automatically determine its WLANcredentials (e.g., the CAP can select an SSID, generate a random WLANpassphrase, etc.). In addition, the CAP can also operate in conjunctionwith other hybrid devices 118 and 120 to determine the second-levelpersonality of the other hybrid devices. In some embodiments (e.g., ifthe hybrid communication network 100 comprises a legacy WLAN accesspoint), the user may override operations for selecting the SSID and WLANpassphrase. In this embodiment, a user may manually configure the WLANcredentials (e.g., SSID and WLAN passphrase) for the CAP to match theWLAN credentials of the legacy WLAN access point. Alternately, the CAPcan determine the WLAN credentials of the legacy WLAN access point(e.g., using Wi-Fi protected setup (WPS) operations), configure itselfusing the WLAN credentials of the legacy WLAN access point, anddistribute the WLAN credentials of the legacy WLAN access point to otherhybrid devices in the communication network 100. In some embodiments,the communication network 100 may include multiple legacy WLAN accesspoints. In this embodiment, each of the legacy WLAN access points thatoperate on the same WLAN communication band (e.g., 2.4 GHz WLAN band, 5GHz WLAN band, etc.) may have the same WLAN credentials. For example,the CAP may configure its WLAN credentials for the 2.4 GHz WLAN bandusing the common WLAN credentials of the legacy WLAN access pointsoperating on the 2.4 GHz WLAN band. The CAP may configure its WLANcredentials for the 5 GHz WLAN band using the common WLAN credentials ofthe legacy WLAN access points operating on the 5 GHz WLAN band. In someembodiments, after the hybrid device obtains/determines its WLANcredentials, these WLAN credentials may be stored and maintained acrosspower cycles. In some embodiments, the IP address and/or the MAC addressof the hybrid device may be registered with the network gateway 124 ofthe hybrid communication network 100. Operations for determining thepersonality (and second-level personality) of the hybrid device 102 willfurther be described with reference to FIGS. 3-5. After the personalityof the hybrid device is determined, the flow continues at block 210.

At block 210, the band, channel, and power are determined for the hybriddevice. For example, the configuration unit 106 can determine theoperating communication band (e.g., 2.4 GHz WLAN band, 5 GHz WLAN band,etc.), operating communication channel of the operating communicationband, and transmit power for WLAN transmissions. The configuration unit106 may determine the operating communication band, the operatingcommunication channel, and the transmission power depending on whetherthe hybrid device is the CAP and (if not the CAP) depending on whetherthe non-CAP hybrid device is configured as an access point, a relay, asink, or is disabled. The flow continues at block 212.

At block 212, flooding behavior of the hybrid device is enabled. Forexample, if it is determined that the network interfaces of the hybriddevice can support the bridging operations without causing loops in thehybrid communication network, then the flooding behavior of the hybriddevice can be enabled. In some embodiments, whether to enable floodingbehavior for one or more network interfaces of the hybrid device 102 candepend on the personality of the hybrid device 102. For example, if thehybrid device 102 is the CAP, all the bridging capability can be enabledfor all the network interfaces of the hybrid device 102. As anotherexample, if the hybrid device 102 is a standby CAP, bridgingfunctionality between the network interfaces through which the CAP isreachable can be disabled. In this example, the bridging functionalitybetween the Ethernet interface (connected to the network gateway 124)and the PLC interface of the standby CAP can be disabled. As anotherexample, if the hybrid device 102 is a non-CAP device, bridgingfunctionality between the hybrid device 102 and “downstream” networkinterfaces (e.g., away from the CAP) can be enabled; while bridgingfunctionality between the hybrid device 102 and “upstream” networkinterfaces (towards the CAP) may be disabled. The non-CAP device mayalso enable bridging between the upstream network interfaces and thedownstream network interfaces. The flow continues at block 214.

At block 214, the hybrid communication network is monitored to determinewhether to re-execute hybrid device configuration operations. Themonitoring unit 108 can perform event-based or time-based monitoringoperations. For example, the monitoring operations may be executed atperiodic intervals and/or in response to detecting that a networkinterface of any hybrid device in the hybrid communication network hasbeen enabled/disabled. The monitoring unit 108 may also analyze channelperformance, RSSI of signals received from access points in the hybridcommunication network, DHCP, traffic load, and/or other suitableperformance measurements to determine whether the hybrid deviceconfiguration operations should be re-executed. As depicted in FIG. 2,if the monitoring unit 108 determines that the hybrid deviceconfiguration operations should be re-executed, the monitoring unit 108notifies the configuration unit 106 to re-evaluate the personality ofthe hybrid device and the flow loops back to block 206.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram 300 for determining a personality of the hybriddevice. The flow 300 begins at block 302.

At block 302, it is determined whether an Ethernet cable is physicallyconnected to a hybrid device. With reference to the example of FIG. 1,the configuration unit 106 can determine whether an Ethernet device isconnected to the Ethernet interface 110 of the hybrid device 102. If itis determined that the Ethernet cable is plugged into the hybrid device102, then the hybrid device 102 may be further analyzed to determinewhether to designate the hybrid device as the CAP of the hybridcommunication network. In FIG. 3, if it is determined that the Ethernetcable is plugged into the hybrid device 102, the flow continues at block304. Otherwise, it is determined that the hybrid device should not bedesignated as the CAP of the hybrid communication network and the flowcontinues at block 310.

At block 304, it is determined whether the hybrid device is a CAP of thehybrid communication network. In one example, the configuration unit 106of the hybrid device 102 can determine whether the hybrid device 102should be designated as the CAP of the hybrid communication network 100.In some embodiments, the configuration unit 106 can determine whether awide area network (WAN) is reachable from a wired network interface ofthe hybrid device 102 to determine whether the hybrid device 102 is theCAP of the hybrid communication network 100. For example, theconfiguration unit 106 can determine whether a WAN is reachable from adedicated and reliable wired networking technology, such as Ethernet. Ifa WAN is not reachable from the wired network interface of the hybriddevice 102, then the hybrid device 102 can be designated as a “non-CAP”device. If a WAN is reachable from the wired network interface of thehybrid device 102, then the hybrid device 102 can be designated as theCAP or a standby CAP. In some embodiments, to determine whether thehybrid device 102 is the CAP of the hybrid communication network 100,the hybrid device 102 can execute DHCP detection operations. Forexample, the configuration unit 106 can determine whether the hybridcommunication network comprises a DHCP server. In some embodiments, thehybrid device 102 can transmit a DHCP discover message at periodicintervals for a predetermined time interval. After transmitting the DHCPdiscover message, the hybrid device 102 can wait to receive acorresponding DHCP offer message in response to the transmitted discovermessage. If the hybrid device 102 receives the DHCP offer message withina predetermined time interval, it is determined that the DHCP server ispresent. If the hybrid device 102 does not receive the DHCP offermessage in response to any of the transmitted discover messages, it isdetermined that the hybrid communication network does not comprise aDHCP server that is reachable from the Ethernet interface 110 of thehybrid device 102. If a DHCP server that is reachable from the Ethernetinterface 110 of the hybrid device 102 cannot be identified, then thehybrid device 102 can be designated as a “non-CAP” device. If a DHCPserver that is reachable from the Ethernet interface 110 of the hybriddevice 102 is identified, the hybrid device 102 can be designated as theCAP or a standby CAP.

In some embodiments, the CAP may always be directly connected to (e.g.,one hop or one communication link away from) the network gateway 124 ofthe hybrid communication network. A standby CAP may also be directlyconnected to (e.g., one hop or one communication link away from) thenetwork gateway 124. In some embodiments, the hybrid device 102 may bedesignated as the CAP or the standby CAP if the hybrid device 102 iscommunicatively coupled with the network gateway 124 of the hybridcommunication network 100 via a single communication interface (e.g.,the Ethernet communication interface). The standby CAP can become theCAP of the hybrid communication network if the current CAP is disabledor if the current CAP fails. Whether the hybrid device 102 is designatedas a CAP or a standby CAP may depend on the communication capabilitiesof the hybrid device 102, the performance measurements of the hybriddevice 102 with respect to other network devices in the hybridcommunication network, and so on. If it is determined that the hybriddevice 102 is the CAP, the flow continues at block 306. Otherwise, it isdetermined that the hybrid device 102 should be designated as a“non-CAP” device and the flow continues at block 310.

At block 306, WLAN credentials are determined for each WLANcommunication band in which the CAP is configured to operate. In someembodiments, the WLAN credentials may be configured for the 2.4 GHz WLANcommunication band and the 5 GHz WLAN communication band irrespective ofwhether the CAP is configured to operate only in a single communicationband. In some embodiments, a CAP mode may also be determined. Forexample, the CAP may be configured so that the WLAN AP module of thehybrid device 102 is switched ON and the WLAN STA module of the hybriddevice 102 is switched OFF (e.g., the WLAN STA module need not beswitched ON because the hybrid device 102 is directly connected to thenetwork gateway 124 via the Ethernet interface 110). In someembodiments, the CAP can also be an AP registrar of the hybridcommunication network (e.g., an IEEE Std 1905.1 AP registrar). The flowcontinues at block 308.

At block 308, one or more operations for selecting the band, channel,and power of the CAP (“CAP BCP selection operations”) are executed. Forexample, the configuration unit 106 can execute the CAP BCP selectionoperations to select the communication band and channel on which the CAPwill operate and to determine the transmission power of the CAP. The CAPBCP selection operations will further be described with reference toFIG. 4. From block 308, the flow ends.

At block 310, it is determined that the hybrid device is a non-CAPdevice. The flow 300 moves from block 302 to block 310 and the hybriddevice 102 is identified as a non-CAP device, if it is determined thatthe Ethernet cable is not connected to the Ethernet interface 110 of thehybrid device 102. The flow 300 moves from block 304 to block 310 andthe hybrid device 102 is identified as a non-CAP device if the hybriddevice is not directly connected to the network gateway 124 of thehybrid communication network (e.g., if the hybrid device is two or morecommunication hops away from the network gateway 124) and if a wide areanetwork is not reachable from a wired interface of the hybrid device102. After the hybrid device is designated as a non-CAP device, the flowcontinues at block 312.

At block 312, one or more operations for selecting the personality,band, channel, and power of the non-CAP device (“non-CAP PBCP selectionoperations”) are executed. In some embodiments, if it is determined thatthe hybrid device 102 is not the CAP, the hybrid device 102 can wait fora user to push a button associated with the non-CAP hybrid device 102(e.g., for push button configuration (PBC) procedures). If the userpushes the button on the hybrid device 102 and the button on the CAP,the WLAN STA module of the hybrid device 102 can execute WLAN PBCoperations and PLC PBC operations with the CAP to establish the WLANcommunication link and the PLC communication link respectively. In someembodiments, if the WLAN STA module (e.g., of the non-CAP hybrid device102) is unable to determine the WLAN credentials of the CAP using theWLAN communication link, the WLAN STA module can obtain the WLANcredentials from the CAP via the PLC communication link once the PLCcommunication link is established. In some embodiments, if the userpushes the button of the non-CAP hybrid device 102 and the button ofanother in-network hybrid device before the CAP is configured, a PLCcommunication link may be established between the two hybrid devices butthe WLAN communication link may not be established. In this embodiment,after the CAP is configured, the WLAN communication link can beestablished (i.e., between the hybrid device 102 and the CAP) and theWLAN credentials can be transferred (from the CAP) to the two hybriddevices. After the CAP is configured and becomes a part of the hybridcommunication network, communication link quality measurements betweenthe non-CAP hybrid device 102 and the CAP can be determined and thepersonality of the non-CAP hybrid device 102 can be determined based onthe communication link quality measurements. The non-CAP hybrid device102 can be configured for optimal performance of the hybrid device 102and the hybrid communication network 100. As will be further describedbelow, the non-CAP devices can be assigned a second-level personality,such as: 1) an access point (e.g., when the AP of the hybrid device isswitched ON and the STA of the hybrid device is switched OFF), 2) arelay (e.g., when both the AP and STA are switched ON), 3) a sink (e.g.,when the STA is switched ON and the AP is switched OFF), or 4) disabled(e.g., when both STA and AP are switched OFF). From block 312, the flowends.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram 400 illustrating example operations forselecting the band, channel, and power of the central access point (CAPBCP selection). The flow 400 begins at block 402.

At block 402, it is determined whether the CAP of the hybridcommunication network is configured to operate in a 2.4 GHz WLANcommunication band. If it is determined that the CAP is configured tooperate in the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band, the flow continues atblock 404. Otherwise, the flow continues at block 408.

At block 404, a 2.4 GHz communication channel is selected for operationof the CAP in the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band. For example, the CAPcan execute EACS operations, ACS operations, or other suitable channelscan operations to identify and select a communication channel with apreferred performance in the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band. Forexample, the CAP can select a communication channel that does notcomprise other active access points. As another example, the CAP canselect a communication channel that comprises active access pointsassociated with a low RSSI. The CAP can be configured to operate on thepreferred communication channel in the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band.The flow continues at block 406.

At block 406, a transmit power is selected for WLAN transmission fromthe CAP in the selected 2.4 GHz communication channel. In someembodiments, the selected transmit power may be the maximum transmitpower of the CAP. In other embodiments, the transmit power may beselected based, at least in part, on the topology of the hybridcommunication network, the interference, and other such considerations.In some embodiments, after the transmit power is selected, the transmitpower may be dynamically adapted based on the distance from thereceiving device and the changing conditions of the hybrid communicationnetwork. The flow continues at block 408.

At block 408, it is determined whether the CAP of the hybridcommunication network is configured to operate in a 5 GHz WLANcommunication band. If it is determined that the CAP is configured tooperate in the 5 GHz WLAN communication band, the flow continues atblock 410. Otherwise, the flow ends.

At block 410, a 5 GHz communication channel is selected for WLANoperation of the CAP in the 5 GHz WLAN communication band. For example,the CAP can execute the EACS operations, the ACS operations, or othersuitable channel scan operations to identify and select a communicationchannel with the preferred performance in the 5 GHz WLAN communicationband. For example, the CAP can select a communication channel that doesnot comprise other active access points. As another example, the CAP canselect a communication channel that comprises active access pointsassociated with a low RSSI. This CAP can be configured to operate on thepreferred communication channel in the 5 GHz WLAN communication band.The flow continues at block 412.

At block 412, a transmit power is selected for WLAN transmission fromthe CAP in the selected 5 GHz communication channel. In someembodiments, the selected transmit power may be the maximum transmitpower of the CAP. In other embodiments, the transmit power may beselected based, at least in part, on the topology of the hybridcommunication network, the interference, and other such considerations.In some embodiments, after the transmit power is selected, the transmitpower may be dynamically adapted based on the distance from thereceiving device and the changing conditions of the hybrid communicationnetwork. From block 412, the flow ends.

In some embodiments, if the CAP is capable of 40 MHz operation (e.g., ifthe width of each channel in the WLAN communication band is 40 MHz), theCAP can execute the following operations when trying to select theoperating channel(s). The CAP can transmit a message to cause all theaccess points in the hybrid communication network to be switched off.The CAP can then try to select the preferred 40 MHz channel in theoperating communication band (e.g., the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication bandor the 5 GHz WLAN communication band). If the CAP determines that it isnot possible to operate in 40 MHz because of conflicting channels thatare being used by APs in neighboring networks, the CAP may switch to 20MHz operation (e.g., where the width of each channel in the WLANcommunication band is 20 MHz). After the CAP selects one or morechannels, the CAP can broadcast a message to indicate that it is inoperation and to indicate the channel(s) it has selected.

Although examples describe operations for selecting a 20 MHz WLANoperating channel or a 40 MHz WLAN operating channel, embodiments arenot so limited. In other embodiments, the CAP (or another suitablenetwork device) may select an operating channel with any suitablebandwidth based on the communication protocol being implemented. Forexample, if the CAP implements an IEEE 802.11ac WLAN communicationprotocol, the CAP may be configured to select an 80 MHz WLAN operatingchannel or a 160 MHz WLAN operating channel.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram 500 illustrating example operations forselecting the personality, band, channel, and power of the non-centralaccess point device (non-CAP PBCP selection). The flow 500 begins atblock 502.

At block 502, a non-CAP hybrid device determines whether a CAP of thehybrid communication network can be identified. For example, theconfiguration unit 106 of the hybrid device 102 can determine whether amessage indicating that the CAP is configured and available in thehybrid communication network was received from the CAP. If the CAPcannot be identified, the flow continues at block 504. Otherwise, if thenon-CAP hybrid device (e.g., the configuration unit 106) has obtainedthe WLAN credentials associated with the CAP and a confirmation messageindicating that the CAP is in operation, the non-CAP hybrid device canwait for a random time period before executing the non-CAP PBCPselection operations described herein. In other words, if the CAP waspreviously identified, the flow continues at block 506.

At block 504, one or more messages are broadcast to identify the CAP andto determine WLAN credentials associated with the CAP. After the CAP isidentified and the WLAN credentials associated with the CAP arereceived, the configuration unit 106 can wait for the random time periodbefore executing the non-CAP PBCP selection operations described herein.The flow continues at block 506.

At block 506, one or more performance measurements between the non-CAPhybrid device and the CAP are determined. For example, the non-CAPhybrid device can determine one of more of: 1) WLAN connection qualityto the CAP on all the communication bands, 2) PLC connection quality tothe CAP, 3) WLAN coverage, 4) candidate channels selected by channelscan operations on all WLAN communication bands, and 5) a number ofcommunication hops (or communication links) between the non-CAP hybriddevice and the CAP.

In some embodiments, the WLAN connection quality to the CAP can be asignal strength (e.g., RSSI) of a WLAN signal received (at a WLANinterface of the non-CAP hybrid device) from the CAP on all thecommunication bands on which the CAP is configured to operate (e.g., 2.4GHz WLAN communication band, 5 GHz WLAN communication band, etc.).Specifically, the WLAN connection quality can be representative of thequality of a connection (i.e., communication link) between a WLAN STAmodule of the non-CAP hybrid device and the CAP. The WLAN connectionquality can be deemed “inadequate” if the WLAN connection does not existor is of a poor quality. The WLAN connection quality can be deemed“adequate” if the WLAN connection is of a good quality. In someembodiments, if the RSSI of the signal received from the CAP is greaterthan a predetermined RSSI threshold (e.g., an RSSI_moderate_thresholdfurther described below), the WLAN connection quality is deemedadequate. Otherwise, if the RSSI of the signal received from the CAP isless than the predetermined RSSI threshold (e.g., theRSSI_moderate_threshold) the WLAN connection quality is deemedinadequate. In other embodiments, the configuration unit 106 can executea short data rate test to check the data rate supported between the CAPand the non-CAP hybrid device via the WLAN connection. The configurationunit 106 can determine the WLAN connection quality based, at least inpart, on the data rate supported.

The PLC connection quality can be representative of the quality of thedata connection (i.e., communication link) between the hybrid device'sPLC module and the CAP. The PLC connection quality can be deemed“inadequate” if the PLC connection does not exist or is of a poorquality. The PLC connection quality can be deemed “adequate” if the PLCconnection is of a good quality. In some embodiments, the PLC connectionquality to the CAP can be indicative of the signal strength of a PLCsignal received from the CAP at a PLC interface of the non-CAP hybriddevice. In some embodiments, the non-CAP hybrid device (e.g., theconfiguration unit 106) can query the PLC module of the non-CAP hybriddevice for the PLC connection quality (e.g., signal strength) betweenthe non-CAP hybrid device and the CAP. If the PLC connection quality isgreater than a predetermined quality (e.g., a PLC_adequate_thresholdfurther described below), the PLC connection quality is deemed adequate.Otherwise, if the PLC connection quality is less than the predeterminedquality (e.g., the PLC_adequate_threshold), the PLC connection qualityis deemed inadequate. In other embodiments, configuration unit 106 canexecute a short data rate test to check the data rate supported betweenthe CAP and the hybrid device via the PLC connection. The configurationunit 106 can determine the PLC connection quality based, at least inpart, on the data rate supported.

The 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage can be the maximum value of all the RSSIvalues measured between the non-CAP hybrid device and any access point(including the CAP) in the hybrid communication network 100. In general,the WLAN connection quality (discussed above) can refer to the qualityof the communication link between the non-CAP hybrid device and the CAP.The 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage is determined based on analyzing the quality(e.g., RSSI) of the communication link between the non-CAP hybrid deviceand each access point in the hybrid communication network. The non-CAPhybrid device may determine its connectivity to the CAP because thenon-CAP hybrid device typically transmits most of its communications tothe CAP. However, by determining its connectivity to the other accesspoints in the hybrid communication network (e.g., by determining the 2.4GHz WLAN coverage), the non-CAP hybrid device can determine whether itstransmissions will cause interference in the hybrid communicationnetwork. For example, if there are two non-CAP hybrid devices in closeproximity to each other and one of the non-CAP hybrid devices isconfigured as an access point, then the other non-CAP hybrid device maynot be configured as an access point to reduce interference.

In one example, the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage can be the maximum value ofall the RSSI values measured between the non-CAP hybrid device and anyaccess point that has its SSID set to a predetermined SSID (e.g.,“SSID1”, in one example) on any channel in the 2.4 GHz WLANcommunication band. In this example, SSID1 can represent the SSIDconfigured on the IEEE Std 1905.1 registrar for the 2.4 GHz WLANcommunication band. The 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage can be used to estimatethe WLAN coverage of the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band at the locationof the non-CAP hybrid device. The 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage can be deemed“weak” if the maximum RSSI value is less than a first RSSI threshold(e.g., signal<RSSI_moderate_threshold). If the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage isweak then the non-CAP hybrid device may not be configured as a relay inthe hybrid communication network. The 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage can bedeemed “moderate” if the maximum RSSI value falls within the first RSSIthreshold and a second RSSI threshold (e.g.,RSSI_moderate_threshold≦signal<RSSI_good_threshold). If the 2.4 GHz WLANcoverage is moderate, the non-CAP hybrid device may potentially beconfigured as a relay of the hybrid communication network. The 2.4 GHzWLAN coverage can be deemed “good” if the maximum RSSI value is greaterthan the second WLAN threshold (e.g., RSSI_good_threshold≦signal). Ifthe 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage is good, the non-CAP hybrid device may not beconfigured as a relay of the hybrid communication network because ofpotential interference issues. However, the non-CAP hybrid device maystill become a relay on the CAP's channel if the preferred channel forSSID1 is the same as the CAP's channel. It is noted that theRSSI_moderate_threshold can be the WLAN RSSI threshold above which thequality of the communication link is considered “moderate.” TheRSSI_good_threshold can be greater than or equal to theRSSI_moderate_threshold and can be the RSSI threshold above which thecommunication link is considered “good.” The WLAN RSSI thresholds can beany suitable value and may be determined based on the number and type ofdevices in the hybrid communication network, the network topology, thetraffic, and other suitable factors.

Operations for determining the 5 GHz WLAN coverage of the hybrid devicecan be executed as similarly discussed above with reference to the 2.4GHz WLAN coverage. To determine the 5 GHz WLAN coverage, the non-CAPhybrid device (e.g., the configuration unit 106) can determine the RSSImeasurements in the 5 GHz WLAN communication band between the non-CAPhybrid device and each access point operating in the 5 GHz WLANcommunication band. In some embodiments, the RSSI measurements for the2.4 GHz WLAN communication band and the 5 GHz WLAN communication bandmay be the same. In other embodiments, however, the RSSI measurementsfor the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band may be different from the RSSImeasurements for the 5 GHz WLAN communication band because of differentpropagation characteristics.

In some embodiments, the RSSI measurements for the 2.4 GHz WLANcommunication band can be determined and averaged over a predeterminedtime interval. Likewise, the RSSI measurements for the 5 GHz WLANcommunication band can be determined and averaged over a predeterminedtime interval. In some embodiments, the time interval for determiningthe RSSI measurements for the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band may bedifferent from the time interval for determining the RSSI measurementsfor the 5 GHz WLAN communication band. In other embodiments, the RSSImeasurements for the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band and the RSSImeasurements for the 5 GHz WLAN communication band may be determinedduring the same time interval. In addition, the non-CAP hybrid devicecan also execute channel scan operations to select candidate channels(e.g., channels with the preferred performance) on each WLANcommunication bands. The non-CAP hybrid device can also determine anumber of communication hops (or communication links) between thenon-CAP hybrid device and the CAP. After the performance measurementsbetween the non-CAP hybrid device and the CAP are determined, the flowcontinues at block 508.

At block 508, the configuration of the AP module of the non-CAP hybriddevice and the STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device are determinedbased, at least in part, on the one or more performance measurementsbetween the non-CAP hybrid device and the CAP. The configuration of theWLAN AP module and the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device canindicate whether the WLAN AP module is switched ON/OFF and whether theWLAN STA module is switched ON/OFF. The configuration of the WLAN APmodule and the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device may also bereferred to as the personality of the non-CAP hybrid device. In someembodiments, in addition to the candidate channels, the channel on whichthe CAP currently operates may also be taken into consideration whiledetermining the personality of the non-CAP hybrid device. For example,the configuration unit 106 can identify a preferred channel (e.g., achannel with the best performance, such as a highest RSSI, lowest errorrate, etc.) from the candidate channels, compare the preferred channelwith the channel on which the CAP currently operates, and determinewhether to configure the non-CAP hybrid device as an access point or arelay. If the preferred channel of the non-CAP hybrid device matches thechannel on which the CAP currently operates, the non-CAP hybrid devicecan be configured as a relay (e.g., the WLAN AP module and the WLAN STAmodule of the non-CAP hybrid device can be switched ON). If thepreferred channel of the non-CAP hybrid device does not match thechannel on which the CAP currently operates, the non-CAP hybrid devicecan be configured as an access point (e.g., the WLAN AP module can beswitched ON and the WLAN STA module can be switched OFF). From block508, the flow ends.

On determining the personality of the non-CAP hybrid device, theconfiguration unit 106 may try to avoid switching the WLAN AP module ONand OFF frequently (e.g., in cases where the personality of the non-CAPhybrid device could be affected by the selected thresholds of the WLAN2.4 GHz SSID1 signal strength measured) because this could cause serviceinterruption (e.g., because connected WLAN STAs may need to re-associatewith other access points). As will further be discussed below, thepersonality of the non-CAP hybrid device (also referred to as“second-level personality”) can be determined based, at least in part,on the quality of the WLAN connection to the CAP (“WLAN connectionquality”), the quality of the PLC connection to the CAP (“PLC connectionquality”), the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage, and/or the 5 GHz WLAN coverage.

In some embodiments, the non-CAP hybrid device can be a single bandsingle radio (SBSR) device. The SBSR device can be a WLAN device that isconfigured only to operate in a single communication band (e.g., eitherthe 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band or the 5 GHz WLAN communicationband). In some embodiments, the communication band in which the SBSRdevice can operate may be determined during manufacturing. In general,the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device can be switched ON ifthe WLAN connection to the CAP is adequate (e.g., if the signal strengthdetected from the CAP at the non-CAP hybrid device is greater than athreshold signal strength). Also, the WLAN AP module of the non-CAPhybrid device can be switched ON if the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage is weak ormoderate. The WLAN AP module of the non-CAP hybrid device can beswitched OFF if both the WLAN connection quality and PLC connectionquality are weak. Typically, if the WLAN connection quality is adequatein the 2.4 GHz communication band, the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage may bemoderate or good.

In some embodiments, for a 2.4 GHz single band single radio device, theWLAN STA module and the WLAN AP module of the non-CAP hybrid devicetypically operate on the same communication channel. This means the WLANAP module of the non-CAP hybrid device may be required to operate on thecommunication channel on which the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybriddevice operates. However, if the WLAN STA module is switched OFF, theWLAN AP module can choose a different communication channel.Accordingly, in some embodiments (e.g., to extend 2.4 GHz WLANcoverage), the WLAN STA module may be switched OFF (even if the WLANreception is good) to cause the WLAN AP module to select anothercommunication channel that is more performance efficient for the WLAN APmodule. This can result in a trade-off between the connectivity of thenon-CAP hybrid device and an increased range/capacity. In someembodiments, if the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage is good, if the non-CAP hybriddevice has a choice to switch ON the WLAN AP module, and if the WLAN APmodule uses a different channel than the CAP, then switching ON the WLANAP module can increase the capacity of the hybrid communication networkat the expense of reducing the possibility of channel reuse with networkdevices in neighboring networks.

In some embodiments, the CAP can be a dual band single radio (DBSR)device with a fixed operating band. A DBSR device can be a WLAN devicethat can operate in either the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band or the 5GHz WLAN communication band, but not simultaneously. If the CAP is aDBSR device, the non-CAP hybrid device can use a management informationbase (MIB) setting to select the band of operation when the non-CAPhybrid device detects the DBSR CAP in the hybrid communication network.In some embodiments, the MIB default setting can be the 2.4 GHz WLANcommunication band. In some embodiments, the 5 GHz WLAN communicationband can also be selected. As discussed above, if the CAP is a singleband single radio (SBSR) device, the non-CAP hybrid device can selectthe same communication band and communication settings (e.g., SSID,security settings, etc.) as the CAP. If the non-CAP hybrid deviceselects the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band, the non-CAP hybrid device(e.g., the configuration unit 106) can execute operations describedabove to determine the personality of the non-CAP hybrid device.Otherwise, if the non-CAP hybrid device selects the 5 GHz WLANcommunication band, the non-CAP hybrid device (e.g., the configurationunit 106) can execute operations described below to determine thepersonality of the non-CAP hybrid device.

In some embodiments, the non-CAP hybrid device can be a dual band dualconcurrent (DBDC) device. A DBDC device can be a WLAN device that cansimultaneously operate in the 2.4 GHz WLAN communication band and the 5GHz WLAN communication band. The second-level personality of the non-CAPhybrid device can be assigned depending on the WLAN connection qualityto the CAP, the PLC connection quality to the CAP, and/or the 2.4 GHzWLAN coverage. In some embodiments, the 5 GHz WLAN coverage can be takeninto consideration while determining the second-level personality of theDBDC non-CAP hybrid device. It should be noted that if the CAP is also aDBDC device, the non-CAP hybrid device can operate in the twocommunication bands (e.g., the 2.4 GHz and the 5 GHz WLAN communicationbands) independently of each other such that the WLAN AP modules innone, one, or both the WLAN communication bands may be active and theoperating channels may be selected independently. However, if the CAP isan SBSR device, the non-CAP hybrid device can configure both thecommunication bands with the same communication credentials (e.g.,SSID/security) as the CAP. In general, the WLAN STA module of thenon-CAP hybrid device can attempt to connect to the CAP via the 2.4 GHzor the 5 GHz WLAN communication band (whichever has the betterconnectivity) and can switch ON the WLAN AP device to transmit on the2.4 GHz WLAN communication band, to improve the 2.4 GHz WLAN coverage,and to transmit on the 5 GHz WLAN communication band after the 2.4 GHzWLAN communication band is filled/occupied. A non-CAP DBDC hybrid devicemay be assigned multiple personalities—one for each communication bandon which the non-CAP hybrid device is configured to operate. In someembodiments, the non-CAP hybrid device can be configured differently forthe same WLAN and PLC input conditions.

The second-level personality can be assigned to the non-CAP hybriddevice depending on the WLAN connection quality to the CAP, the PLCconnection quality to the CAP, and/or the 5 GHz WLAN coverage. Ingeneral, the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device can beswitched ON if the WLAN connection quality to the CAP is adequate. TheWLAN AP module of the non-CAP hybrid device can be switched ON if thereis good WLAN or PLC connection to the network gateway 124. Typically,the number of channels in the 5 GHz band is large and therefore, channelreuse may not be a concern as in the 2.4 GHz band.

As discussed above, in some embodiments, the configuration unit 106 canuse a suitable channel scan/selection algorithm (e.g., an enhancedautomatic channel selection (EACS) algorithm) to select a preferredchannel on which the WLAN AP module of the non-CAP hybrid device shouldoperate. For example, the configuration unit 106 can select a channelassociated with the best performance. For each WLAN communication band,the EACS algorithm can indicate a list of candidate channels that have agood performance (e.g., candidate channels that exceed a thresholdperformance) and the candidate channels can be ordered based onpreference/performance. The channel selection algorithm can alsoindicate, for each channel on the candidate list, a list of detectedservice set identifiers (SSID), a list of detected basic service setidentifiers (BSSID), and a channel utilization of the channel. In someembodiments, the configuration unit 106 can select a channel that doesnot comprise other active access points. In other embodiments, theconfiguration unit 106 can select a communication channel that comprisesactive access points associated with a low RSSI. In some embodiments, asdiscussed above, if it is determined that the WLAN AP module of thenon-CAP hybrid device should be switched ON, the non-CAP hybrid device(e.g., the configuration unit 106) can select a preferred channel onwhich the WLAN AP module should operate. However, in other embodiments,the non-CAP hybrid device (e.g., the configuration unit 106) may alsoselect a second preferred channel (e.g., if the preferred channel is thesame as the channel on which the CAP operates). In other embodiments,other suitable channel selection procedures can be executed to determineone or more channels in which the WLAN AP module of the non-CAP hybriddevice should operate.

In some embodiments, when executing operations to select a channel, thenon-CAP hybrid device (e.g., the configuration unit 106) may apply apenalty to a primary channel currently used by the CAP and may avoidusing the secondary channel used by the CAP. This can ensure that theconfiguration unit 106 selects a channel that is different from theprimary and the secondary channels selected by the CAP (to avoidinterference with the CAP). After the non-CAP PCBP selection operations(described in FIG. 5) are executed, if the WLAN AP module of the non-CAPhybrid device is switched OFF, if the WLAN STA module of the non-CAPhybrid device is switched ON, and if the WLAN STA module of the non-CAPhybrid device is connected to and associated with an access point thatis not the CAP of the hybrid communication network, the non-CAP hybriddevice is deemed to be operating in mode B. Otherwise, the non-CAPhybrid device is deemed to be operating in mode A. As will be furtherdiscussed below, the monitoring unit 108 can execute differentmonitoring operations depending on whether the non-CAP hybrid device isoperating in mode A or mode B.

After the CAP BCP selection operations and the non-CAP PBCP selectionoperations described above in FIGS. 2-5 are executed and the personalityof the hybrid device is determined, the monitoring unit 108 can performmonitoring procedures further described below. The monitoring unit 108can monitor (e.g., continuously, at periodic intervals, etc.) the hybridcommunication network 100 and the device status to detect any changesthat could affect the personality and configuration of the hybrid device102. For example, the user may unplug or move a network device in thehybrid communication network 100, radio conditions may change, the PLCconnection quality may change, the WLAN connection quality may change,etc. As another example, the Ethernet cable of the hybrid device 102 maybe connected or a previously connected Ethernet cable may bedisconnected. As another example, the existing CAP of the hybridcommunication network 100 may be unreachable or may change. If themonitoring unit 108 detects a change in the hybrid communication network100, the monitoring unit 108 can cause the configuration unit 106 tore-execute the operations for determining the personality of the hybriddevice 102 to determine if the change in the hybrid communicationnetwork results 100 in a change in the personality of the hybrid device102. For example, the operations for determining the personality of thehybrid device 102 may be re-executed to determine if there is a new CAPin the hybrid communication network 100, if the configuration of theWLAN AP and STA modules of the hybrid device 102 should be changed, etc.However, the monitoring unit 108 may be configured to ensure that theoperations for determining the personality of the hybrid device 102 arenot re-executed too often, thus ensuring that the personality of thehybrid device 102 does not oscillate between two or more values.Built-in hysteresis in the time domain and analysis of performancemeasurements (e.g., PLC data rate, WLAN data rate, etc.) can be used toachieve stability and a reasonable reaction time to changes that couldimpact network performance.

As discussed above, if the WLAN AP module of the non-CAP hybrid deviceis switched OFF, if the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device isswitched ON, and if the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device isconnected to and associated with an access point that is not the CAP ofthe hybrid communication network, the non-CAP hybrid device is deemed tobe configured in mode B. Otherwise, the non-CAP hybrid device is deemedto be configured in mode A. In some embodiments, if the hybrid device isconfigured in mode A, the hybrid device (e.g., the monitoring unit 108)can perform monitoring procedures periodically (e.g., everyTCA_periodic_timer seconds) and at least once (e.g., at a randomlyselected or predetermined time instant) within the periodic timeinterval (e.g., within the time interval indicated byTCA_periodic_timer). However, if the hybrid device is configured in modeB, the hybrid device (e.g., the monitoring unit 108) can perform themonitoring procedures as described, except that the performance/qualityof the WLAN connection can be measured between the WLAN STA module ofthe hybrid device and the associated access point (and not the CAP).

It should be understood that FIGS. 1-5 and the operations describedherein are examples meant to aid in understanding embodiments and shouldnot be used to limit embodiments or limit scope of the claims.Embodiments may perform additional operations, fewer operations,operations in a different order, operations in parallel, and someoperations differently. For example, if the non-CAP hybrid devicereceives a command/message from the CAP requesting that the WLAN APmodule of the non-CAP hybrid device should be switched OFF, the WLAN APmodule of the non-CAP hybrid device may stop transmitting/receivinguntil the WLAN AP module receives a broadcast message indicating thatthe CAP is in operation and that the WLAN AP module can be switched ON.After receiving the broadcast message indicating that the CAP is inoperation, the non-CAP hybrid device can wait for a random time periodand then re-start executing the non-CAP PBCP selection operationsdiscussed herein in FIG. 5.

In some embodiments, the communication channel with the preferredperformance can be selected as the communication channel with a bestvalue of a predetermined parameter. For example, a communication channelthat does not comprise other active access points may be selected. Asanother example, a communication channel that comprises active accesspoints associated with a low RSSI may be selected. In other embodiments,the communication channel with the preferred performance can be selectedbased on a combination of multiple parameters.

Although examples refer to determining the personality of the non-CAPhybrid device based on the WLAN connection quality to the CAP, the PLCconnection quality to the CAP, the 2.4 GHz (and/or the 5 GHz) WLANcoverage, embodiments are not so limited. In other embodiments, inaddition to the aforementioned inputs, the operations for determiningthe personality of the non-CAP hybrid device can also take intoconsideration whether the non-CAP hybrid device is connected to anend-device. For example, if the non-CAP hybrid device is connected to anend-device (e.g. an Ethernet device) that will consume data generated by(or relayed by) the non-CAP hybrid device, the non-CAP hybrid device maychoose to establish redundant upstream links over improving WLANcoverage.

In some embodiments, if there are multiple access points in the hybridcommunication network, the configuration unit 106 can determine thecommunication channel and/or the communication band on which an accesspoint should operate. For example, if two access points are far awayfrom each other (e.g., separated by at least a threshold distance), theaccess points may reuse the same communication channel or use adifferent channel (if possible). As another example, if the two accesspoints are close to each other, the access points may use a differentchannel. As another example, if the two access points are very closetogether (e.g. separated by a few feet), then the access points maytransmit on different communication bands (e.g., one of the accesspoints may use the 2.4 GHz communication band while the other accesspoint may use the 5 GHz communication band).

In some embodiments, the hybrid device 102 can implement one or moreindicators (e.g., LED indictors) to indicate different statuses of thehybrid device 102. In some embodiments, the hybrid device 102 maycomprise a power/status/security LED, an Ethernet port status LED, aWLAN port status LED, a PLC port status LED, etc. For example, thepower/status/security LED can be a dual color LED (e.g., a green and redLED). The power/status/security LED may blink green during devicebooting or when WLAN or PLC connection operations (e.g., Wi-Fi protectedsetup (WPS)/PLC simple connect operations) are being executed. Thepower/status/security LED may be solid red if there is a boot upfailure. The power/status/security LED may be OFF if the device is notpowered up. As another example, the Ethernet port status LED can be agreen LED, can display solid green when the Ethernet communication linkis established, can blink green if the Ethernet is active, and can beOFF if the Ethernet communication link is not established. As anotherexample, the WLAN port status LED can be a green LED that can displaysolid green when the WLAN communication link is established, blink greenif the WLAN is active, and can be OFF if the WLAN communication link isnot established. As another example, the PLC port status LED can be adual color (e.g., green and yellow) LED. The PLC port status LED can besolid green if the PLC link is established and the quality of the PLClink is better than a quality threshold. The PLC port status LED canblink green if PLC is active. The PLC port status LED can be solidyellow if the PLC link is established and the quality of the PLC link ispoorer than the quality threshold. The PLC port status LED can be OFF ifthe PLC link is not established. In some embodiments, the hybrid devicescan comprise two sets of LEDs—one that indicates the status of the WLANSTA module of the hybrid device and another that indicates the status ofthe WLAN AP module of the hybrid device. For example, if the WLAN STAmodule and the WLAN AP module are switched OFF, thepower/status/security LED may be configured to blink red.

In some embodiments, the WLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid devicemay not necessarily associate with the CAP. In other embodiments, (e.g.,if a non-CAP access point provides better performance than the CAP), theWLAN STA module of the non-CAP hybrid device may associate with thenon-CAP access point that provides the best performance. In someembodiments, all the access points in the hybrid communication networkmay transmit at their respective maximum transmission power and eachhybrid device may execute the configuration operations described aboveto configure one or more network interfaces of the hybrid device.However, in other embodiments, the hybrid communication network maycomprise a centralized network device that performs global optimizationon the entire communication network, determines how to configure eachnetwork interface of each hybrid device in the hybrid communicationnetwork (for optimal performance), and also performs power control foreach access point in the hybrid communication network. In someembodiments, the hybrid devices may support communication on the 2.4 GHzband, the 5 GHz band, or both the communication bands. The hybriddevices may be configured to broadcast communication band capabilitiesirrespective of the communication band on which the hybrid device iscurrently operating. For example, the hybrid device may transmitnotification indicating that it supports communication on the 2.4 GHzband and the 5 GHz band even though the hybrid device may only betransmitting on the 2.4 GHz band.

Although FIGS. 1-5 describe operations for configuring the WLANinterfaces of the hybrid devices, embodiments are not so limited. Inother embodiments, the operations described herein can be executed toconfigure network interfaces that implement other suitable types ofcommunication protocols and technologies (e.g., a PLC interface).Although the Figures describe example operations for establishing a PLClink between hybrid devices (e.g., between the hybrid device 102 and theCAP), configuring the hybrid device based, at least in part, on the PLCconnection quality to the CAP, etc., embodiments are not so limited. Inother embodiments, a communication link between the CAP and anothersuitable network interface of the hybrid device 102 may be established(e.g., WLAN, Ethernet, MoCA, etc.). Furthermore, the quality of othersuitable communication links to the CAP may be used to determine how toconfigure the hybrid device 102. For example, the configuration of thehybrid device 102 may be determined based on a WLAN connection quality,WLAN coverage, speed of an Ethernet connection to the CAP, quality/speedof a MoCA connection to the CAP, and/or the quality/speed of other wiredor wireless communication links to the CAP.

Although some examples describe the CAP as a network device that isdirectly connected to the network gateway 124 via Ethernet, embodimentsare not so limited. In other embodiments, a network device that isdesignated as the CAP may connect to the network gateway 124 via anothersuitable communication protocol (e.g., PLC, MoCA, etc.). Furthermore,although some examples describe the CAP as being distinct from thenetwork gateway 124, embodiments are not so limited. In someembodiments, functionality of the CAP may be integrated within thenetwork gateway 124. The network gateway 124 (and consequently the CAP)may have any suitable wired or wireless backhaul, such as long-termevolution (LTE) communication protocols, digital subscriber linecommunication protocols (xDSL), etc., to communicatively connect to awide area network (WAN). In some embodiments, a network device (e.g.,the network gateway 124 with integrated CAP functionality) may beselected as the CAP in response to determining that the network deviceis coupled to the WAN via a communication technology, such as LTE and/orxDSL. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the CAP may not be dynamicallyselected. Instead, a network device may be preconfigured as the CAP ofthe network based, at least in part, on being configured as the networkgateway and implementing WAN-based communication technologies such asLTE and/or xDSL).

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the presentinventive subject matter may be embodied as a system, method, orcomputer program product. Accordingly, aspects of the present inventivesubject matter may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, asoftware embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code,etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects that mayall generally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or“system.” Furthermore, aspects of the present inventive subject mattermay take the form of a computer program product embodied in one or morecomputer readable medium(s) having computer readable program codeembodied thereon.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may beutilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signalmedium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readablestorage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic,magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system,apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. Morespecific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readablestorage medium would include the following: an electrical connectionhaving one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, arandom access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber,a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storagemedium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a programfor use by or in connection with an instruction execution system,apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless,wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination ofthe foregoing.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of thepresent inventive subject matter may be written in any combination ofone or more programming languages, including an object orientedprogramming language such as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The program codemay execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user'scomputer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user'scomputer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remotecomputer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may beconnected to the user's computer through any type of network, includinga local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or theconnection may be made to an external computer (for example, through theInternet using an Internet Service Provider).

Aspects of the present inventive subject matter are described withreference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods,apparatus (systems) and computer program products according toembodiments of the inventive subject matter. It will be understood thateach block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, andcombinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or blockdiagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. Thesecomputer program instructions may be provided to a processor of ageneral purpose computer, special purpose computer, or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such thatthe instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer orother programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable dataprocessing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer,other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to causea series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, otherprogrammable apparatus or other devices to produce a computerimplemented process such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer or other programmable apparatus provide processes forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of one embodiment of an electronic device 600including a mechanism for automatic configuration of the electronicdevice 600. In some embodiments, the electronic device 600 can be alaptop computer, a tablet computer, a netbook, a mobile phone, a smartappliance, a gaming console, a desktop computer, or other suitableelectronic device comprising communication capabilities. In someembodiments, the electronic device 600 can be a hybrid device thatcomprises multiple network interfaces 604, each of which couples theelectronic device 600 to different communication network segments (oraccess technologies). The electronic device 600 includes a processorunit 602 (possibly including multiple processors, multiple cores,multiple nodes, and/or implementing multi-threading, etc.). Theelectronic device 600 includes a memory unit 606. The memory unit 606may be system memory (e.g., one or more of cache, SRAM, DRAM, zerocapacitor RAM, Twin Transistor RAM, eDRAM, EDO RAM, DDR RAM, EEPROM,NRAM, RRAM, SONOS, PRAM, etc.) or any one or more of the above alreadydescribed possible realizations of computer-readable storage media. Theelectronic device 600 also includes a bus 610 (e.g., PCI, ISA,PCI-Express, HyperTransport®, InfiniBand®, NuBus, AHB, AXI, etc.), andnetwork interfaces 604 that include at least one of a wireless networkinterface (e.g., a WLAN interface, a Bluetooth® interface, a WiMAXinterface, a ZigBee® interface, a Wireless USB interface, etc.) and awired network interface (e.g., a powerline communication interface, anEthernet interface, etc.).

The electronic device 600 also includes a communication unit 608. Thecommunication unit 608 comprises a configuration unit 612 and amonitoring unit 614. The configuration unit 612 can executefunctionality described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5 to determine apersonality, operating band, operating channel, transmit power, and/orother operating conditions of the electronic device 600. Theconfiguration unit 612 can determine whether a WLAN module of theelectronic device 600 is a central access point. If not, theconfiguration unit 612 can determine whether to switch a WLAN AP moduleand/or a WLAN STA module of the electronic device 600 ON or OFF. Themonitoring unit 614 can execute operations described above to determinewhether to re-execute the operations for determining the personality ofthe electronic device 600. Any one of these functionalities may bepartially (or entirely) implemented in hardware and/or on the processorunit 602. For example, the functionality may be implemented with anapplication specific integrated circuit, in logic implemented in theprocessor unit 602, in a co-processor on a peripheral device or card,etc. Further, realizations may include fewer or additional componentsnot illustrated in FIG. 6 (e.g., video cards, audio cards, additionalnetwork interfaces, peripheral devices, etc.). For example, thecommunication unit 608 may comprise one or more additional processorsthat are distinct from the processor unit 602 coupled with the bus 610.The processor unit 602, the memory unit 606, and the network interfaces604 are coupled to the bus 610. Although illustrated as being coupled tothe bus 610, the memory unit 606 may be coupled to the processor unit602.

While the embodiments are described with reference to variousimplementations and exploitations, it will be understood that theseembodiments are illustrative and that the scope of the inventive subjectmatter is not limited to them. In general, techniques for automaticconfiguration of a hybrid device as described herein may be implementedwith facilities consistent with any hardware system or hardware systems.Many variations, modifications, additions, and improvements arepossible.

Plural instances may be provided for components, operations, orstructures described herein as a single instance. Finally, boundariesbetween various components, operations, and data stores are somewhatarbitrary, and particular operations are illustrated in the context ofspecific illustrative configurations. Other allocations of functionalityare envisioned and may fall within the scope of the inventive subjectmatter. In general, structures and functionality presented as separatecomponents in the exemplary configurations may be implemented as acombined structure or component. Similarly, structures and functionalitypresented as a single component may be implemented as separatecomponents. These and other variations, modifications, additions, andimprovements may fall within the scope of the inventive subject matter.

1-40. (canceled)
 41. A silicone polyester made by the reaction of; [1] afatty acid having the following structure:R—C(O)—OH wherein: R is alkyl containing 8 to 26 carbons or mixturesthereof; [2] a polyglycerol having the following structure;

wherein; n is an integer ranging from 0 to 9; [3] a diacid selected fromthe group consisting of (i) dimer acid having the following structure:

(ii) hydrogenated dimer acid having the following structure:

and (iii) a dicarboxylic acid having the following structure;

wherein; c is an integer ranging from 1 to 10; and [4] a monofunctionalsilicone compound having the following structure:

wherein; a is an integer ranging from 1 to
 20. 42-43. (canceled)
 44. Aprocess for conditioning skin, which comprises contacting the skin withan effective conditioning concentration of a silicone polyester made bythe esterification reaction of; [1] a fatty acid having the followingstructure:R—C(O)—OH wherein: R is alkyl containing 8 to 26 carbons or mixturesthereof; [2] a polyglycerol having the following structure;

wherein; n is an integer ranging from 0 to 9; [3] a diacid selected fromthe group consisting of (i) dimer acid having the following structure:

(ii) hydrogenated dimer acid having the following structure:

and (iii) a dicarboxylic acid having the following structure;

wherein; c is an integer ranging from 1 to 10; and [4] a monofunctionalsilicone compound having the following structure:

wherein; a is an integer ranging from 1 to
 20. 45. A process of claim 51wherein the conditioning concentration ranges from 0.1 to 25% by weight.